After awarding Seagal citizenship through a presidential decree earlier this month, Putin hosted the actor at the Kremlin on Friday and handed him the passport

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Russian President Vladimir Putin shakes hands with U.S. actor Steven Seagal in the Kremlin in Moscow,Friday, Nov. 25, 2016. Putin has given a Russian passport to Seagal, a regular visitor to Russia in recent years, calling it a sign of a thaw in relations between the two countries.

President Vladimir Putin has given a Russian passport to U.S. action film star Steven Seagal, calling it a sign of a thaw in relations with the United States.

The 64-year old actor has been a regular visitor to Russia in recent years and has accompanied Putin to several martial arts events.

Seagal also has vocally defended the Russian leader's policies and criticized the U.S. government.

After awarding Seagal citizenship through a presidential decree earlier this month, Putin hosted the actor at the Kremlin on Friday and handed him the passport.

Putin told Seagal he hopes the ceremony, which was shown on Russian state television, is "also a sign of a gradual normalization of the relations between the countries."

According to Reuters, when Putin asked Seagal how he was doing, the actor replied, "Everything is good. We will talk later. For now just honored to be here." A Kremlin spokesperson told reporters that Putin awarded Seagal the passport because of the film star's "warm feelings towards Russia."